The Daily Worker Newspaper, October 10, 1925, Page 9

sirestsamnen PeaenctcMn te RESON AIREDBE SAO Be veronE Jr RRR SL Rt 8 aR om A ne ee * paecrawanin sarees ve EN ae RE aR: vicinal - miners’ struggle in West ...¥*. been arrested? «wer, be given to the question. ~“miners haye been Called out on strike BEN GITLOW. HE strike in the anthracite has been turned into a war against the militant members of the United Mine Workers of America who are support- ing the program of the Progressive Miners’ Committee. In Scranton the largest. city in the anthracite region, four militant miners are behind pris- on bars. They are Patrick Toohey, a young fighting miner, who defied President Lewis at the tri-district con- vention, which was held before the strike was called and formulated the demands for the recent strike; August Valentine, a young miner, who has been in the thick and.thin of the Virginia; Alex Zarek, a big-hearted Russian, ‘who wants to gee the strike conducted _in the interest of the miners, and Alex Reid, gecretary of the Progres- sive Miners’ Committee, a militant miner, who spent 29 years in the bi- tuminous fields digging coal. HY have these militant miners Only when one ‘knows the real situation can an ans- 158,000 “In the anthracite region. No one knows better than John L. Lewis, the appointed president of the United Mine Workers, that there is no genu- ine strike in the anthracite. The present stoppage was desired by the coal operators. J. L. Lewis just help- ed along the scheme of the operators. { The coal operators are not making any attempt to mine coal. There is absolutely no need for it. John L. Lewis knows this also. The strike has been called for the express purpose of giving the coal operators an oppor- tunity to utilize the cry about a coal shortage to force the sale of inferior grades of coal that hag been accu- mulated in the millions of tons in the last two years. This coal which in normal times is practically worth- less because ne-market can be found for it; is now due-to the strike, be- ing sold at exhorbitant prices, The operators are coining millions of dol- lars wRile the miners are starving. The operators are very thankful in- deed to John L. Lewis, because in ad- dition to affording them an opportun- ity to sit back and pocket big profits, J. L. Lewis has taken care that the properties of the operators shall not be damaged during the suspension. He has made an agreement with the operators to keep on the job the 10,- 000 maintenance men whose business it is to see that the mine properties are repaired and kept in good shape: The keeping of the maintenance men on the job is a conspiracy on the part of Lewis and the operators to prevent any effective struggle on the .. part of the miners against the opera‘ tors. It gives an opportunity for the 5; ¢0al operators to continue the suspen- , sion foras, many months as it i .. hecessary to dispose of their surplus stocks. The operators are not con- cerned about the starvation of the miners that is taking place now be- » cause the store keepers have decided not to grant credit to striking min- -ers and John L. Lewis who will not starve and whose only object is to sell out the miners, will hypocritically assume a fighting attitude and per- mit the starving of the miners to . continue. R what consideration has John '* L, Lewis called this strike? Only two demands actually were presented to the operators. One for the check- off.and the other for a ten per cent increase in wages. That Lewis will not ingist on an increase in wages is it to every one acquainted with . the anthracite strike situation. Lewis’ has entered into a conspiracy ~ with the coal operators at the expense of the miners, the coal operators to make millions in additional profits and the Lewis machine in return to get the check off: That is why there are no picket lines around the mines. That is why no strike meetings are being held. That is why there is no rank and file strike committee in the field. That is why there are no strike headquarters thruout the district. The militant progressive miners, . however, knowing the deplorable con- ditions confronting the miners in the anthracite have started a campaign tc _ turn this strike into a genuine strug- gle in the interest of the miners. They have raised the slogan of a minimum living wage for all miners regardless of output. They have raised the issue of a six-hour day and five-day week for the anthracite miners; they have raised the issue of the labor party; they have started a move to make the struggle effective by getting all the maintenance men to quit their posts and join the striking miners; they have raised the slogan against a check off settlement; that there can be no settlenfent without wage increases, and many other demands of vital im- portance to the miners. UMEROUS meetings were held by the Progressive Miners’ Commit- tee and the Workers Party, which is supporting the progressive demands. Leaflets with these demands have reached miners in the thousands thru- out the district. The workers were beginning to seriously consider the proposals presented to them.- The op- erators and the reactionary officials of the United Mine Workers became alanmed. The capitalist press began to seream against*the reds. The au- thorities began to smash and ‘break up meetings and the reactionary cor- rupt officials headed by Cappellini, president of District No. 1, the largest district of the United Mine Workers in the anthracite with a membership of 70,000 raised a howl against the militants and insisted upon having the meetings of the progressives and the Workers Party broken up and those responsible for them prosecut- ed. The reactionary officials of the United Mine Workers are in back of the persecution of the progressive elements because they realize that the progressive movement must not be allowed to get a foothold if they are to put thru their deal without any objections from the rank and file in selling out the strike for the check off. Let us examine some of the out- rageous activities of these..corrupt} officials. When-a hearing was held in Scranton on Monday afternoon on the arrest of the four militant miners, the following officials of the United Mine Workers of America were in the court room: D. W. Davis, International representative of the United Mine Workers of America, and James Glea- son and John Boylan ®f the execu- tive board of District No. 1. R, GLEASON made a vicious talk against the militant miners un- der arrest. He said the men came for the purpose of disrupting the min- ers’ union. He informed the court that Patrick Toohey, who had suc- ceeded in joining the miners’ union, had been relieved of his membership card in the morning. (This, in spite of the fact that Toohey has been a gogd loyal member of the organization for the last eight years.) This is a gem ffom the lips of Gleason, the la- bor leader of the miners. In the court- room against members of his own or- ganization, Mr. Gleason made the fol lowing statement: “These men are seeking to undermine the principle of our country’s consfitution and the government itself. There is no room for any of them in any organization of the United Mine Workers, whose constitution provides that any man known to hold membership in a radi- cal order shall be dropped from the rolls of the union.” This Gleason who is doing everything in his power to send fellow»miners to prison because they are fighting in the interests of the workers wanted to know from the anthorities: who was financing them in their nefarious work. Gleason is a good Lewis lieutenant and his sen- timents were approved by the other two reactionary Lewis officials, who were in the mto use their influence in railr imnocent loyal and devoted members of the United Mine Worker. to. 0 to do their dirty work.” " OW listen to another high official of the the United Mine Workers and a cog in the Lewis machine and you will believe you are listening to an agent provocateur of the coal com- panies and the department of just-. ice. This time Mr. James A. McAn- drew, secretary of District No. 9, of 4 clusion that the demands stated in the circular are greatly in excess of the demands presentd by the Unit- ed Mine Workers and that the atti- tude expressed to John L. Lewis is very unfriendly. In their message to the miners, the reds intimated the anthracite region, makes a state- ment’ as follows: “After carefully reading the liter- ature before me, | come to the con- ! PAT TOOHEY that Lewis\is not to be trusted and warn them to be very careful that he does not double cross them when an agreement is reached between the miners and the operators. This action itself is believed to be suffi- cient proof that the, work.-is that of radicals who, if apprehended will be punished to the full extent of the law and charged with conspir- acy to destroy the mine workers’ union. The members of the union have been warned to pay no atten- tion to the circulars and to treat them as being extranpous to their organization.” This McAndrew wants to punish loyal miners to the full extent. He wants the authorities to arrest them and to send them to prison for a long term of years if they refuse to re- main quiet when John L. Lewis sells out the interests of the miners to the coal operators. ¢ I HAVE geceived a letter from a worker in the anthracite region, which is very illuminating. He writes as follows: “The. situation has changed here considerably since you left. We ‘can no longer secure permits for meetings of the progressive miners. The union officials have definitely stated that they will start prose- cution against any miner or any worker who is caught distributing the Workers Party leaflet or any leaflet where the Lewis machine is Prizes! Shake A portrait study of the lucky winner at~ the door by LYDIA GIB- SON. done by FRED ELLIS. AN: AUCTION LIFE PRESERVERS AND COFFEE ~ To the Rescue! IMPERIAL HALL 2406 N. HALSTED ST. And only 60c admiesion | Given by the North Side Branch W.P. The Anthracite Strike, A John L. Lewis Strike attacked as treacherous, will be ar- rested by the authorities and prose- cuted.” This letter comes from District No. 9 and is in line with the declaration made by Mr. James A. McAndrew. Lewis is now in Scranton. He is to confer with a committee represent- ing the chamber of commerce over the. possibility of settling the strike, In Scranton the United Mine Workers’ reactionary officialdom is prosecuting the progressive miners. Lewis’ will try to settle the strike for the ¢heck off. The check off Will be a betrayal of the strike beeausé it will in no way better the eonditions for the an- thracite coal miners. Thru these per- secutions Lewis may be able at this time to betray the miners. -The min- ers, however, when they will return to the mines if the strike is immedi- ately settled, will find that they are the victims of two groups—the ex- ploiters and the corrupt reactionary Lewis officialdom. They will discover that in spite of the strike, conditions for them will have become . worse. They will then remember the fight that the progressive’ miners who were railroaded by the Lewis?maching to prison, made for them. Theyewill look towards the progressive cmrove- ment and the ‘progressive’ nrovement in the United Miné Workers will grow in the anthracite districts. If Lewis cannot settle the strike immediately, then the progressives whl be ablé to fight back the persecutions and de- finately establish the movement for a real militant fighting organization of the rank and file among the miners. gare actions of the Lewis machine in the anthracite, their treacher- ous activities against the workers who Slave in the mines is very apparent in the anthracite strike. The miners must organize to get .rid of officials } who will bring union fighters before capitalist judges for the purpose of sending them to capitalist peniten- tiaries. The miners must get rid of the corruption and treachery of the Lewis machine: There «must more J.'L. new GeAbee tree thik industry. d This can be achieved by’ building up the Progressive Miners’ Commit- tee. A powerful Progressive Miners’ Committee of the rank and file will prevent agent prgvocateurs of the Lewis machine from sending to pris- on Toohey, Valentine, Reid and Zarek. A big progressive movement will drive Lewis and his gang from the miners’ union and will put the real fighters for the miners, the progressives and mili- tants in charge of the organization. ‘ tan To Save THE DAILY WORKER a Leg at the First Chicago Daily Worker xanwnte swe | Rescue Party SUNDAY OCT.18